The Bygones Resurfaced
by Originals143
Summary: With a part of his past suddenly springing in front of him, senior inspector Abhijeet is determined to search for answers.


**|: The Bygones Resurfaced :|**

 **A/N** : Set after the Flashback episode.

..

It wasn't really an uncommon occurrence where a particular thing has not bothered senior inspector Abhijeet for a long duration. However, whenever it happened, he wasted no time in searching for answers, relaxing only after he found what he desired.

This time, needless to say, was no different. Fidgeting with the page of the case file for a long time, he found himself contemplating- for probably the first time in his life- on whether or not to go in search of answers, whether it was or wasn't necessary or whether it did or did not have any consequences. However, he was unable to quell the feeling hovering at the back of his mind regarding that one thing. The past which had suddenly sprung in front of him, leaving an unwanted trail of unclear flashes in his already darkened life.

Moreover, he found himself being overcome by an indefinable guilt for a mistake he didn't know whether or not he had committed. Never before had he had this unknown nagging feeling- something that had left a void, between a depth of varied emotions- some of content, others mostly of an unsettled agony.

For the first time, senior inspector Abhijeet found himself unable to make a concrete decision. The repercussions were uncertain, the aftermath unknown. Still, something deep down his heart told him there were some matters unsettled, and it was best he cleared them- for his own peace of mind.

A ray of light had unexpectedly shone from the dark tunnels of his past, after all.

Making up his mind at last, Abhijeet took a cup of strong coffee and started with the pending work at hand aiming to wrap up as much as he could by that evening. He, however, remembered one thing he had to do before he could come to any conclusion.

He could literally feel his heart explode out of his chest in those few seconds while the phone rang and the recipient answered. "Hello?," came the voice, and Abhijeet closed his eyes shut in reflex. At occasions like these, Abhijeet otherwise knew very well how to keep himself in check. Nevertheless, it took him a good five seconds before he could muster the courage to speak. "H.. Hi!"

She recognized almost instantly. "Abhijeet?" The tone in the inquiry seemed a mixture of surprise and hesitation, and Abhijeet gulped before he confirmed. "Yes."

 _After all these years, she still hadn't forgotten. Not a single thing. If only he could.._

"Hi!," she sounded evidently nonplussed. "How are you doing?," she asked, and Abhijeet could hear the deep intake of breath. "Good," he answered, followed by a silent pause. "Is.. is there something?," she now sounded wary, and in spite of himself, he replied almost in an instant. "I was wondering if we… if we c… could meet. For some time," he again closed his eyes fearing the outcome.

Her voice, however, was astonishingly warm. "Yes.. that's fine." _Maybe she knew he was looking for answers. Answers which only she could give._ "Today evening… 6.30?," he asked. While the time and venue were being decided, Abhijeet felt the awkwardness creep in him like never before.

The clock suddenly seeming to have stopped ticking, Abhijeet could hardly concentrate on his work. Giving his profession, he had dealt with all kinds of people, handled and interrogated various menacing criminals and still could call it a day with efficiency and ease. Matters like _this_ , however, were something beyond his understanding, altogether.

Therefore, when Daya who had been eyeing him suspiciously all afternoon asked him why he was haphazardly arranging his desk at 6'o clock and where was he hurrying, he strode off without bothering to answer, thankful that no case was reported for that evening. "I'll call you later," was all he could say, leaving a flummoxed Daya staring at him with evident bewilderment.

She had already reached their decided place by the time he arrived. _Did she know he didn't like waiting for people?_ Trying to brush all incoherent thoughts aside, Abhijeet approached her with a nervous smile and a few rather clumsy attempts at avoiding eye contact. Wasting no time, she came straight to the point. "I understand Abhijeet, you must be having a lot of questions," she gave a weak smile as she spoke, gesturing him to take a seat at the table. Somehow, unbeknownst to him, she seemed a lot calmer than him. Or maybe he was just overthinking, given the turmoil running through his head, he thought.

"Survi… I..," he began, but before he could speak any further, she interrupted. "The way things so unexpectedly turned up for you… I didn't mean to," her tone was uncomfortable, her eyes going downcast as she continued, "I never, _never_ meant to cause any trouble… to you." This made Abhijeet look at her for the first time since they had met, and he could sense her perturbation.

Abhijeet pondered for a while if all of this really mattered now, and if he was wasting his, and most importantly _her_ time for no reason. Certain events in the past few days, however, had somewhere compelled him to take this decision. The fact that someone had been a part of his life, had _loved_ him to an extent that she had treasured his memories till date was both shocking and overwhelming for him.

And that too when he recollected _nothing_ of it… of _her_. He deserved to know something, he thought.

When she spoke again, her voice was heavy. "All I want to say is, I'm sorry. Sorry that all of this brought disturbance in your life. The murder, my husband's misbehaviour, our…" she trailed off, looking in his eyes with embarrassment and guilt. "You don't have to be. In fact, I should be the one saying sorry. Somewhere I feel your life's ruined because of me," he averted his eyes, a frown creasing his forehead.

"Whatever happened… nothing was in your hands, Abhijeet. Please stop blaming yourself. I was… I was destined to go through all of this, so I did," she shifted in her seat, her eyes going downcast. "It has ended… for good. I have no qualms against anyone. Now I have decided to just live for myself… and for Pari," she finished taking a deep breath and Abhijeet smiled in spite of himself.

Looking at him, Survi spoke in a reluctant yet warm tone. "I… I was really happy to see you the other day as a CID officer…" she looked away as she continued, "It was good to see you doing so well in the work you've always wanted to do. Just a dedicated and truthful police officer as you were when we were toget-" she stopped abruptly as she felt his eyes on her, piercing through her soul, and through his own. Sighing deeply, Abhijeet felt his agony returning. "Survi, you know why I have called you here today. I-" he found himself short of words to explain, but thankfully she cut in. "Abhijeet, it's ok! I know a lot of questions must be going through your mind right now. It's ok!," she assured.

"This memory loss and its pain… it still haunts me... like it's going to kill me. The nightmares… everything… and the more I try to think about it, the more it hurts," Abhijeet winced, almost on the verge of tears. Confronting past nightmares had been the most excruciating thing for him, and talking about it made him feel more vulnerable. "And amidst all this, I can never forget the fact that my mother died because of me!," he poured in, closing his eyes to block the encroaching grief.

A range of emotions running through her, Survi took a few breaths before speaking, "I'm sorry, this-" she started but Abhijeet put in, "It's alright, it's… I've learned to deal with it. It's been eight years now!," he sighed, vehemently blinking away the tears.

Abhijeet took a sip from his coffee as his mind oscillated between uncertainty and distress. Feebly clearing his throat, he looked at her and grimaced slightly. "Did… did you try to… to f… find out what happened to me? Where did I suddenly disappear? And wh… why did you m… marry that Akash?," he instantly looked away, regretting what he had just asked and bit his lip. She sniffed slightly as she answered, "It's… it's not like I never tried searching for you. I did… you don't… you don't know how torturous it was for me! All of a sudden you vanished and I felt like you took a part of my soul away," her voice quivered as she looked at him, tears streaming down her face.

 _Maybe all this was just as painful for her as it was for him._

As she continued, Abhijeet found his entire body overcoming with guilt and he listened despondently carefully attempting to hide his despair. "And then one day I learned that you have lost your memory completely and you remember nothing from your past life. Believe me, it was… it was extremely devastating for me," it was now her turn to hide her despair and she clenched her fingers under the table taking deep audible breaths. "And before I knew anything, I got married to Akash," she said, her voice barely above a whisper.

"When we… we found you, he had b… beaten you so much!," Abhijeet spoke with concern and all of a sudden, he wished he would have stopped her from getting tortured. Only if he knew. _Only if he remembered._

"Why didn't you run away? Why were you tolerating his atrocities?," Abhijeet earnestly wanted to know. "Akash was a good man when I married him. I… I had accepted my life with him. I thought I'd be happy," Survi supplied with a strange calmness on her face. It had been ages since she had poured her heart out to someone. And she didn't know if it was destiny, but that someone had to be that one person she had loved- truly and irrevocably. "By the time he had gotten involved in wrongdoings, I already had Pari. I had to endure everything for her sake."

They were silent for a couple of minutes to let their respective feelings sink in. "Didn't you, you know, f… feel like contacting me? I could have helped you out of this!," Abhijeet spoke subconsciously, later realizing she could have contacted the police instead. "I mean…," he tried to cover up but she didn't seem to mind. "I had no whereabouts of you... and I didn't want to create problems in your life. I never, _never_ meant to cross your path again, trust me! Not even when we met during the murder case."

She took a long pause before ploughing on. "Suddenly you were standing in front of you, and in that moment, I don't think I can ever explain the dilemma I went through." Abhijeet yearned to speak but words stuck in his throat. "It was never easy for me, these eight years," she gave a lopsided smile as she continued, "But I guess it will be different from here onward," she looked at him with gratitude and he returned the smile.

"You didn't tell me about yourself," she said. Abhijeet gave a slight chuckle as he spoke, "I have nothing to tell about myself. All I can say is I have been lucky enough to have gained my job, my post with the same love, trust and respect as I might have had earlier. I will always owe this to ACP sir. If it wasn't for him, I don't know what I'd have done with my life," he provided, a distant look on his face. "Now, my team… they are my only world. And my duty is my only priority."

Survi watched him speak, and when he looked at her, it seemed her eyes spoke volumes. "You haven't changed one bit, Abhijeet. You're the same person you were when we first met… in college," she said without him asking, feeling he wanted to know this. He could simply manage a meek smile.

"Thank you, Abhijeet. Thank you for saving my life. Thank you for… for _everything_ ," she said in a grateful tone and his response was quick. "Thank _you_ for coming!," he replied. After a few moments of visible reluctance, he continued as they stood up to go their respective ways, "If you need anything, anytime, please don't hesitate to call me… or the CID. And please give my regards to Pari," he gave her a warm yet broad smile for the first time that evening. "I will, definitely," she assured.

As she turned to leave, he suddenly remembered something. "Survi, I... I have got something for you, something I wanted to return," saying this, he took the love-letter and the picture of them together which the team had seized during the case investigation. He handed them to her with a sheepish look.

The fact that he was holding a love-letter written by him to the girl standing right in front of him, whom he had no previous memory about was too overwhelming for him to register.

She accepted the things with a serene smile playing on her lips. "You… you have still kept these with y… you? Hidden from everyone?," he asked and she smiled in spite of herself. "I think you know the reason. These are too precious for me to lose," she replied placing the things in her purse. Abhijeet decided not to question any further. He simply understood.

"Have a good life!," she wished him, extending her hand for a hand-shake and Abhijeet returned the favour. "Bye," he spoke, before they parted ways. Forever. Never to see each other again.

The thunderous clouds of darkness in his mind were replaced by clear rays of peace as Abhijeet walked toward his car. After all these years, some things did matter in their own way. Like this meeting did matter… for his and her respective lives to change for the better.

..

 **~~ The End ~~**

..

 **A/N** : This was something running through my mind since a long time. No offense meant to anyone.


End file.
